#kumfa

“It should be changed...” 😬

It’s that time again! Yep, CLASH is exactly two weeks from today (Aug. 30) so doing my customary, “Please come to the show!” post. Here are the main details. 

What: Rock/Hip-hop charity show When: Aug. 30, Doors open at 7:30 and show starts at 8 p.m. Where: Freebird 2 (the newest Freebird venue… NOT THE ONE BY COCOON!) How Much: 10,000 won Charity: Korean Unwed Mothers Families’ Association Lineup: Bobby Sang Good, ANNA, Sonya-Maria & Oro Padron; Baekma, Band Man, Jack Zilla & CJ Infinite, Jolly V Host: Rydia Kim DJ: Scotticus Finch

This CLASH is going to be raising money for Korean Unwed Mothers Families’ Association, which is a group that is near and dear to my heart. It’s a group that I personally volunteered with a couple years back and they are just wonderful, wonderful people who are working really hard to try and make some change in Korean society and with the government in regards to how unwed mothers are treated in Korea. Not to mention, they really helped me out when I was in need of help, so I hope to do whatever I can to make this CLASH successful so we can give them some well deserved help.

This group was created by unwed mothers for unwed mothers. They advocate for the rights of pregnant unwed women, unwed mothers and their children. They provide job training and seminars for unwed women and often put together trips for them and their children on major holidays in Korea since a fair amount of them have been cut off by their families. They also run the Hyung Project which matches up a volunteer with one children in a mentorship program. On top of that, they run HEATER which is a home that unwed pregnant women can stay in for one month before they give birth and one month after to help them get back on their feet. They do not discriminate against women who already have children or those who have children with special needs. It’s an all around great organization who is making strides with the work that they are doing. And I’m happy to say that 100% off all proceeds made at the show through ticket sales and raffle (if we have one… still working on getting prizes) will go straight to KUMFA.

Now, on to our performers!

We are so happy to announce that in solidarity with our charity, we have gotten some incredibly talented ladies to take the stage. This is the first time we’ve been able to get a majority of women in our lineup! Four out of seven acts are women or predominantly women. In our opening lineup we have the talented R&B singer Anna, who recently collaborated with reggae artist Skull on his first solo album and the amazing soul singer Sonya-Maria will be teaming up with hip-hop artist Oro Padron which is sure to bring a little bit of Latin flair to the CLASH stage. Rounding up our opening artists is the duo Bobby Sang Good with incredible soul singer B Young and beatboxer Sang.

Headlining is none other than Korean rapper Jolly V! Most people may be familiar with her from her recent stint on SMTM 3 (where she got cut way too soon in my opinion). Trust me, this lady can rock the stage. She started off in Korean hip-hop at the tender age of 19 after entering a rap contest with Hiphopplaya.com on a whim. She won and ended up collaborating with one of the top DJs in the hip-hop scene, DJ Juice. In the 6 years since then, she’s been working and building up her skills and most recently performed in “Legendary Hip-hop Show” with the likes of Insane Deegie, YDG, Vismajor and Bulhandang.

Rounding up the hip-hop side of things is expat duo Jack Zilla (who was briefly shown on the first episode of SMTM 3) and CJ Infinite. Both artists have been mainstays in the Seoul expat scene for the last few years and bring a bit of old school hip-hop to the stage. They’ve been performing fairly regularly at Shining Ground and Jack heads up Show Kingz Entertainment, which puts on some great hip-hop and B-boy shows in Hongdae and Itaewon.

For rock we have expat band BaekMa who performed at Pentaport Rock Festival in Incheon earlier this month. BaekMa is a four-piece band based in Seoul. Hailing from the U.S., U.K., Australia and Northern Ireland, the band formed in late 2013 after a few boozy encounters on the indie dance floor. Band influences are broad, with members playing in rock, folk and classical outfits before coming to Seoul. BaekMa's sound lies somewhere south of Moloko and north of The Beach Boys-- unapologetic indie pop. Having dropped their debut self-titled EP at the beginning of July 2014, they're excited to keep writing and working on a full length LP due out this Autumn.

And our last main act is Korean act Band Man. No stranger to the indie rock stage, this four-man group has been all over Hongdae. Honestly, their music style reminds me a lot of Relient K (without the piano), very fun with a lighter sound, and a bit reminiscent of bands from the late 90s, early 2000s though definitely not dated. It’s a band that will get the crowd up and dancing around, that’s for sure. And their Nirvana cover is pretty darn good.

Hosting the show is the lovely Rydia Kim, who is co-founder and current head of Varyd, which is a clothing line that is about so much more than just clothes. It is based around the concept of wearable art and aims to break free from the current standards of beauty. Rydia is also involved with Disruptive Voices, which works to speak out against sexual violence and violence against women.

We’re also happy to have DJ Scotticus Finch joining us again. Be sure to stick around after the show because Scotticus Finch will keep spinning so we can keep the party going!

So please come out and enjoy some great music while helping out a really great cause. We’ll have someone from the charity speaking at the show to let everyone know more about what it is they do and how you can get involved.

One last important note, we have changed venues! We are moving to Freebird 2 which is located over near the Hongdae parking lot. It’s bigger, better and everything from the stage to the lighting is brand new. We’re so excited to have a new home and still continue working with the folks over at Freebird, who have been huge supporters of CLASH throughout the years. The new club was previously Club 500, so if you know that, you’re golden. But I’m also posting a map below.